The French Dispatch

[thatguy]

The latest from Wes Anderson, 3 separate stories, connected under the umbrella as the last articles for a paper called The French Dispatch, with the wrapper story being the goings on in the last days of said publication. 

Preamble - travel writer Owen Wilson sets the stage with a tour of Ennui-Sur-Blasé

Article 1 concerning prisoner/artiste Benecio del Toro. Tilda Swinton is great as the article author/art historian. This one was pretty funny. 

Article 2 is about the kidnapping of a detective's protege son. Ed Norton is the Django-esque chauffeur/kidnapper. Cameos abound. Mixed with some animation. Funny, but I didn't find it as much as the first installment. 

In Article 3, youth revolutionary Timothy Chalemet pairs up with reporter Francis McDormand to take down the establishment. This one features a lot of theatre stage craft. I enjoyed the final battle bit. 

Epilogue. 

Recommended if you like the Wes Anderson deadpan quirkiness. 

--tg

[Greg]

It was very Wes Anderson. I like his use of Mis-en-scene making sure all the bits of depth in the scene are used. It's all very staged, but I enjoyed it. Article 1 is the best segment but I did like Owen Wilson and his guide to the City of Ennui. There are a lot of nods to French Cinema in the movie, too.

Lots of quirky. Watch it just for Article 1.